WAEC Agricultural Science 2014 past questions

Checked by the Skolra question team · Last updated 23 October 2026

Ten questions from the 2014 WAEC Agricultural Science paper, with answers and explanations. We hold 44 questions from this paper, and the Skolra app has all of them.

WAEC Agricultural Science 2014 questions and answers

1. 1.Fowls are debeaked in order to
   1. A
      to prevent the birds from going broody
   2. B
      to aid in differentiating the male birds from the female birds
   3. C
      to minimize wastage of feed by the birds
   4. D
      to prevent cannibalism among the birds
      Correct
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   Answer: D

   Debeaking is the practice of trimming off a part of the upper beak (and sometimes part of the lower beak) of fowls, especially in the laying flock.

2. 2.What is the function of nitrosomonas bacteria in the nitrogen cycle?
   1. A
      It fixes free nitrogen gas from the air directly into ammonia compounds in the soil
   2. B
      It converts nitrites already present in the soil into nitrates for plant uptake
   3. C
      It oxidizes ammonia into nitrites, the first step of nitrification in the soil
      Correct
   4. D
      It breaks down soil nitrates into free nitrogen gas and releases it to the atmosphere
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   Answer: C

   Nitrosomonas is a nitrifying bacterium. Its job in the nitrogen cycle is to oxidize ammonia (NH3) to nitrite (NO2-). This is the first stage of nitrification, which happens after dead organic matter has been decomposed and ammonified into ammonia.

3. 3.Calculate the annual depreciation of a farm machinery with a total depreciation of D63,000 and a useful life of 5 years
   1. A
      ₦6,300
   2. B
      ₦126,000
   3. C
      ₦12,600
      Correct
   4. D
      ₦31,500
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: C

   Annual depreciation = Total depreciation ÷ Useful life

   Annual depreciation = ₦63,000 ÷ 5 years = ₦12,600 per year.

   This is the straight-line method, which spreads the total depreciation of a farm machine evenly over every year of its useful life.

4. 4.Which of the following pairs of farming systems uses bush fallowing?
   1. A
      Shifting cultivation and extensive farming
      Correct
   2. B
      Mixed farming and mixed cropping
   3. C
      Plantation agriculture and intensive farming
   4. D
      Crop rotation and monoculture
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   Answer: A

   Shifting cultivation and extensive farming are the pair built on bush fallowing. In both systems, land is relatively plentiful and population pressure on it is low, so instead of forcing a plot to keep producing, the farmer cultivates it for a season or two, then abandons it and moves to a fresh plot while the old one grows back into bush. That regrowth drops leaf litter, rebuilds organic matter and restores the soil's nutrients naturally, so by the time the farmer returns to it, it is fertile again.

5. 5.An example of fungal disease of stored grain is
   1. A
      Streak
   2. B
      Damping-off
   3. C
      Mosaic
   4. D
      Mould
      Correct
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   Answer: D

   Mould is the correct answer. Mould (e.g. species of Aspergillus and Penicillium) is a fungal disease that attacks grains such as maize, guinea corn and beans after harvest, in storage, especially when the grains are not well dried or the store is damp. Mould shows up as a cottony or powdery growth on the grain surface, causing discolouration, bad smell, loss of weight and, in some cases, poisonous toxins (aflatoxin).

   So among the options, only mould fits both requirements in the question: it is fungal, and it affects stored grain.

6. 6.The function of the seed-tube of a seed drill is to
   1. A
      To convey the seed from the hopper down into the furrow opened in the soil
      Correct
   2. B
      To cover the sown seed with soil after it drops
   3. C
      To regulate the quantity of seed released from the hopper
   4. D
      To mix the seed with fertilizer before it is sown
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: A

   Correct answer: conveying the seed from the hopper down into the furrow opened in the soil.

   So the seed-tube's one job is to convey the metered seed from the hopper into the open furrow.

7. 7.The following plants are forage grasses except
   1. A
      Spear grass
   2. B
      Cowpea
      Correct
   3. C
      Guinea grass
   4. D
      Elephant grass
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: B

   Cowpea is correct because it is a legume (family Fabaceae), not a grass. Forage grasses belong to the grass family (Poaceae) and are grown mainly to be grazed or cut for livestock feed.

   So among the four, cowpea stands out as the plant that is a legume, not a forage grass, making it the correct answer to the "except" question.

8. 8.A farm produce which does not require fermentation during processing is
   1. A
      Cocoa
   2. B
      Coffee
   3. C
      Cassava
   4. D
      Maize
      Correct
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   Answer: D

   Maize is the correct answer. Maize is processed by simply drying the harvested cobs and then shelling and milling the grains — no fermentation step is involved.

9. 9.The agricultural sector in West Africa is plagued with poverty because
   1. A
      farmers use mechanized equipment and modern technology on large-scale plantations across the sub-region
   2. B
      farm settlements are sited close to major urban markets, which keeps transport costs very low
   3. C
      most farmers still practise subsistence farming, producing little more than what their families need
      Correct
   4. D
      government gives generous long-term loans at low interest rates to every category of farmer
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: C

   The straight answer: the agricultural sector in West Africa remains poverty-stricken mainly because most farmers still practise subsistence farming — small plots, rudimentary tools (hoe and cutlass), and production aimed at feeding the farmer's own household rather than generating a marketable surplus. With little or nothing left over to sell, farmers earn little cash income, cannot reinvest in better inputs, and stay trapped in low productivity and low earnings — a cycle of poverty.

   So the candidate must recognise that it is the small-scale, subsistence nature of farming — not good infrastructure or easy credit, which don't actually exist for most farmers — that keeps the sector poor.

10. 10.The practice of growing different crops in sequence on a piece of land is known as
    1. A
       Monocropping
    2. B
       Crop rotation
       Correct
    3. C
       Shifting cultivation
    4. D
       Mixed cropping
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer: B

    Crop rotation is the correct answer. It is the practice of growing different crops, one after another, in a planned sequence on the same piece of land over different seasons or years — for example, planting maize, then a legume like cowpea, then a tuber crop like yam, in turns on the same plot.

The questions come from past JAMB, WAEC and NECO papers. We use software to help write the answer options and explanations, and every answer is checked twice before it goes on the site. How we check

Spotted a wrong answer? Tell us from the app or on the contact page and we check it.

Practise all 44 questions we hold from the 2014 paper, on a timed CBT screen

Every question has the answer and an explanation, in the Skolra app.

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